#I almost relapsed on checking his Reddit

[automatismoateo]

My best friend is a cocaine addict, and going to a "Christ-based" rehab. via /r/atheism

Submitted April 09, 2017 at 11:25PM by Haddontoo (Via reddit http://ift.tt/2oTL8aY) My best friend is a cocaine addict, and going to a "Christ-based" rehab.

Where he will learn how to lead a life without drugs, not through learning about his disease, or therapy to help with the core problems that have led to addiction...nope, through prayer and bible study. I checked out the place he is going, not a single degree in psychology or social work I could find. Just a former heroin addict and his 23YO son, with seemingly no education on the subject of addiction or counseling, just teaching about god.

Now, the problems I have are three-fold. First, he will be leaving Colorado to go to Sacramento for this program, meaning he is leaving behind all of his support (and me for six months, how sad). Second, he is going because it, like he, is Russian, and he knows a person who went through the program successfully (he also knows 2 others that dropped out after a month, and have both gone back to using since), and it, like he, is Christian. Those really aren't good reasons to devote 6 months to a program.

Of course, this is the largest problem, to me. He is going to learn to deal with his addiction and remain sober...while there. Of that, I have no doubt. But with only bible study and prayer, he isn't going to even touch the reason he uses; a fucked-up childhood of heroin addiction, gangs and friends dying, and a lack of meaning in his life.

I have tried to talk him out of it, tried to talk him into going to an in-patient clinic with actual fucking mental health professionals, but he is so stubborn, he will barely listen. I have told him exactly what will happen; the program may be successful for a time, but without working on the core problems, the addiction will return. And without learning tools to handle the addiction, relapse is almost guaranteed at some point.

I don't know what to do. The best I can do is support him and hope, I guess, but I know him. I know his weaknesses and his triggers, and without working on them, he will eventually falter and relapse. And when this guys does anything, he jumps into the deep end head first.

#reddit